WSBK-Jerez

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SBK Race Bulletin - 2013 Jerez

 

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CAMIER SIXTH IN JEREZ FIRST-DAY QUALIFYING

FIXI Crescent Suzuki?s Leon Camier marked his return to action following a month-long lay-off through injury to record a stunning sixth-quickest time in today?s first qualifying session for this weekend?s eni FIM Superbike World Championship event at Jerez in Spain.

Camier used this morning?s free practice session to re-acquaint himself with the Yoshimura-powered Suzuki GSX-R and to test a number of set-up strategies that his team wanted to evaluate. Following further setting changes in time for this afternoon?s session, Camier felt more at home on his machine and quickly got into a smooth and fast rhythm as he continued to build in confidence. He improved on his times throughout the 45-minutes of qualifying, before eventually putting a softer rear compound tyre into his FIXI Crescent Suzuki and setting the sixth-fastest time.

Jules Cluzel worked with his crew to get his bike dialled-in to the 4,423m Spanish circuit and to find the right balance of grip and consistency in readiness for Sunday?s two races. Cluzel has good knowledge of the circuit so spent today working on set-up for his machine rather than learning lines and pushing for a fast lap-time. He is confident of a good qualifying tomorrow and then will be looking to push further in this season?s final races.

Today?s sessions were held in warm sunshine with track temperatures reaching 38?C. Davide Giugliano set the top time today with championship leader Tom Sykes in seventh. FIXI Crescent Suzuki and the rest of the field will have a second qualifying session tomorrow morning to decide the 15 riders that will qualify for the afternoon?s Superpole to challenge for the best grid positions for Sunday?s two 21-lap races.

Leon Camier:

?This morning the guys had some settings that they wanted to try that they had picked up from the other riders, but it really didn?t work for me and the bike didn?t feel so good to ride, plus I?m lacking a bit of confidence so the combination of the two left us down towards the bottom of the timesheets. This afternoon we put the bike back to how I had it last time out and I was then able to try the soft tyre and managed to go quick at the end. I was happy with the lap-time to be sixth, but we need some more dry time to get some consistency. I am still not very confident on the bike, so I really need dry time to get the feeling back, but rain is forecast tomorrow so that might not be possible. My foot feels awkward, especially in some of the right-hand corners, but I can get around ok. I think for race distance it will be painful, because at the end of today it was throbbing and starting to swell up, but it is what it is so there?s no point complaining!?

Jules Cluzel:

?It was a much better day today compared to Magny-Cours where we struggled a little bit. We started to work with the bike today and went step-by-step to get where we want. This morning I think everybody had a really strange feeling, because the grip felt strange and the lap-times were quite slow. We tried to find some grip and consistency and we worked on this in the afternoon so we lost some time, but at the end we made a good and interesting run and now we have some data to work on tonight. I think that we can now make a good qualifying and Superpole tomorrow, whatever the weather.?

Paul Denning ? Team Manager:

?Just to be here in Jerez and be passed fit to race was a testament to Leon?s determination and professionalism. He?d been told by four highly-respected doctors that he wouldn?t be able to put any weight on the foot for at least six weeks and now four weeks later he is back with the team and has qualified in the top-six this afternoon. Not only are the physical injuries tough to overcome, but to also regain confidence and make-up for the lack of recent track time is difficult, but Leon has gone step-by-step today and done an incredible job overall. If we can keep this going and target top-10 finishes in the races, that would be a superb result based on everything that has happened recently.

?Jules has pushed hard today and worked really well with his team. I think there is a lot more to come and the ultimate lap-time shouldn?t be too difficult to improve on quite significantly; the biggest concern is the bike?s performance when the tyre is used and how we can maintain the pace when the grip has dropped down. We have plenty to work on tomorrow, but the guys are really focused and we?ll be doing everything we can to give Jules a better package for final qualifying tomorrow.?

Jerez ? eni FIM Superbike World Championship ? Qualifying: 1. Davide Giugliano (Aprilia) 1?42.374: 2. Marco Melandri (BMW) +0.267: 3. Eugene Laverty (Aprilia) +0.382: 4. Toni Elias (Aprilia) +0.408: 5. Sylvain Guintoli (Aprilia) +0.532: 6. Leon Camier (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) +0.562. 10. Jules Cluzel (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) +0.866.

 

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Difficult opening day for Pata Honda

The Pata Honda team endured a tough start to the final round of the World Superbike championship season at Jerez in Spain today with riders Leon Haslam and Michel Fabrizio ending the day in 15th and 17th places respectively.

Haslam and his crew spent much of the day dealing with electronics issues that affected his CBR1000RR?s engine braking performance, while Fabrizio complained of a lack of rear grip exiting corners.

Second qualifying takes place at the 4.432km Jerez circuit tomorrow morning with both riders aiming to progress to the afternoon?s Superpole, which will determine final grid positions for Sunday?s two 21-lap races.


Leon Haslam

We?ve got some problems and I think I did about six flying laps this afternoon in qualifying. I?m over two seconds away from what we were doing here in the test last year so we?ve got some work to do. We haven?t touched anything on the chassis today so we?ve got to find a solution to these issues. Everyone?s working hard to do that for tomorrow.

Michel Fabrizio

I had almost no grip, which is really disappointing since I was very fast here in the test one year ago. Now, it?s completely different and I am losing a lot of time exiting the corners which is not good at all. The team is looking very closely at everything now to see where the problem is but, for sure, we need to find the solution tonight in time for the second qualifying tomorrow morning.

Pieter Breddels ? technical co-ordinator

These results are, of course, not good. At the moment we are puzzled why we are so far off, which has something to do with the bike and not Leon, so we have to work hard to fix the bike for him. Michel had different problems but they are probably more than just a grip issue, so it?ll be a long day for the whole Superbike squad.



2013 World Superbike championship, round 14 ? Jerez (4.423km), Spain

First qualifying results:

1 Davide Giugliano (ITA) Aprilia 1m42.374s

2 Marco Melandri (ITA) BMW 1m42.641s

3 Eugene Laverty (IRL) Aprilia 1m42.756s

4 Toni Elias (ESP) Aprilia 1m42.782s

5 Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Aprilia 1m42.906s

6 Leon Camier (GBR) Suzuki 1m42.936s

15 Leon Haslam (GBR) Pata Honda 1m43.821s

17 Michel Fabrizio (ITA) Pata Honda 1m43.958s

 

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Sykes On The Front Row For Season Showdown
WSBK, Jerez, Spain, 19 October 2013

Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) came within 0.048 seconds of his ninth Superpole win of the year, earning a highly-prized front row start in the process as he goes for raceday success on Sunday.
Sykes On The Front Row For Season Showdown
Sykes had been on the leading mix at Jerez all through practice and qualifying although not pushing too hard in Superpole on the eve of the final raceday of the year, after a harmless fall in an earlier session.

Tom leads the championship by 37 points and starting Sunday?s races from second place on the grid puts him in an almost perfect position to finish the great job he, his team and Kawasaki have been doing all year.

Loris Baz (Kawasaki Racing Team) was all set to ride at the final round of the year as his fractured D4 vertebra had healed up so well in a short space of time, but final medical approval was not given for Loris, which prevented him from competing on his Ninja ZX-10R.

Mark Aitchison and his Team Pedercini Kawasaki team-mate Federico Sandi each qualified for the Superpole contest, with Sandi finishing up 14th. Aitchison had a series of great rides to the very last session in Superpole and he finished up a confident ninth on the grid.

In the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup class, Jeremy Guarnoni (MRS Kawasaki) will start the race from pole position on Sunday after taking the fastest lap in combined qualifying today. Kawasaki Team Pedercini rider Leandro Mercado was third fastest, with his team-mate Lorenzo Savadori seventh. Alessandro Andreozzi (Pedercini Team Kawasaki) was fourth and Romain Lanusse (Team MRS Kawasaki) fifth.

Tom Sykes: ?Front row is our target and it has been all season, and it just so happens that we have had eight pole positions this year as a result. I would say it was possible to make pole today but we had a little hiccup and there was no need to test the boundaries again. I know what my potential is and we did not really utilise the full potential of myself, and the bike, in Superpole. We want to get a good clean start if we can tomorrow, get stuck in and see what happens. A couple of guys are going to be fast early on and we have just got to do what we normally do every weekend. That is my plan. I am quite happy with our race set-up on the Ninja ZX-10R and the only thing I am trying to think about is trying to win the races. The conditions do change between races, and race two is going to be hotter than race one, but I am sure every guy on the grid has taken that into consideration. I think all things considered the bike is good across mixed conditions. Over race distance of 21 laps, I am happy.?

 

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Jerez: Ups and downs for the BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team in the Superpole

There was light and shadow for the BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team in the final Superpole qualifying of the 2013 FIM Superbike World Championship. Despite his injured right ankle, factory rider Marco Melandri equaled his second best qualifying result of the season. He finished the Superpole qualifying in a strong fourth with his BMW S 1000 RR and will start tomorrow's races at Jerez from the second row. His team-mate Chaz Davies struggled in the second part of Superpole and finished tenth. Superstock-1000-champion Sylvain Barrier, who debuts in World Superbikes on a third RR for the team, only narrowly missed qualifying for Superpole and will start from 16th.

To give his foot a rest before Superpole, Marco did not take part in the free practice early this afternoon. He was then the first rider to go out in Superpole 1. He only did one flying lap on race tyres, set the fastest time of the session and returned to the pits. Chaz also only needed one fast lap on race tyres to comfortably qualify for the second part of the Superpole. There, Marco did two laps on race tyres which directly brought him to Superpole 3. Chaz also began with race tyres and then did a second outing on a qualifying tyre, as he needed to improve his time. But the Welshman did not benefit from the extra-grip the tyre offers. He narrowly missed Superpole 3 by only a few hundredths of a second and had to settle for tenth. In the third and final session, Marco used his two qualifying tyres and set the fourth fastest time.

In the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, IDM champion Markus Reiterberger from Germany took over duties on Sylvain's BMW HP4. He finished sixth in today's second qualifying session and thus will start tomorrow's race from the second row. His team-mate Greg Gildenhuys qualified tenth on the other HP4 in the BMW Motorrad GoldBet STK Team.

Marco Melandri: "On this track during winter testing the bike worked well and this weekend the bike has been working well too. This morning I chose to, and agreed with the team to sit out free practice to avoid overloading the ankle. Superpole was quite good, despite the fact I was not able to ride 100 percent in all sectors. In the first two Superpole sessions the ankle was okay, then in the third I started having some pain. I'm satisfied with the fourth place and I'm optimistic for tomorrow. We're so close to our competitors, the race pace is good and the bike is okay. This afternoon I'll do some more physio to the ankle to be fit for tomorrow."

Chaz Davies: "I am not happy with today. It was a difficult afternoon. With the increasing temperatures we suffered from lack of grip. I crashed on the first lap of free practice and then in Superpole I was not able to get any advantage with the qualifying tyre which is something that happened to me for the first time this year. I could feel the grip but the way it was pushing the front did not allow me to use the tyre to its advantage. It was kind of frustrating because I did my best lap on a race tyre in Superpole 1 and after that I was not able to repeat it. We will now work on the set-up for the races as there are some areas where we still need to improve. We will check the data and see what we can do to be well prepared for tomorrow."

Sylvain Barrier: "Of course I would have been very happy to be in Superpole but I missed it by one tenth of a second. It is my first time on this bike and that is part of the game so I am not really frustrated. We found some good settings for the race today and I am pretty happy for this. I'm getting more and more used to the bike and understand better what I can do with it. I did many laps on used tyres to find out how I can control the bike and I think it will be good in the race. The races will be very tough. I just need to keep calm and focus on braking, going through the apex and opening the throttle correctly. I am sure that during the race I will continue to learn as I can follow some riders and watch what they are doing. I am confident."

Serafino Foti (Sport Director BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team): "It was a quite positive day. Marco has some pain with his ankle but, despite everything, he did an excellent job in Superpole. Of course tomorrow will be much more difficult because the race is very long but given the fact he'll start in a good position he will do his best for the last races. Chaz unfortunately is not completely happy with the bike but he's very motivated to have two good races tomorrow. We'll continue working to set-up the bike and tomorrow morning in the warm up we'll check the work we will do. Sylvain is improving on each outing, it was a pity he didn't get into Superpole by just one tenth, even because he could have ridden some more laps getting more and more feeling with the bike. Tomorrow he'll do his best to have a good race.

In the Superstock 1000 Cup, Markus secured a good grid position on the second row. We are sure that he will make good use of it and have a strong race. He is an experienced rider and he got acquainted with the HP4 and the DDC pretty soon. So we are optimistic that he will claim a good result for BMW."

Andrea Dosoli (Technical Director BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team): "It was not an easy day for our three riders but overall we have improved the performance of the bikes. We fixed some of the issues the riders had complained about yesterday and as a consequence we saw an improvement in the lap times. Marco has shown us today how strong motivation can overcome the pain of an injury and we were honestly surprised by what he could do in Superpole. He did not to ride in the free practice to avoid stressing the ankle and for this reason we could not use the session to fine tune the bike but the set-up is not bad anyway. He was fast with used tyres and then he did a very promising lap time with a fresh tyre in Superpole. So I am confident that tomorrow he will try to say 'Goodbye' to BMW with a good result. Chaz has improved the handling of his machine, it is a bit more agile which is what he was looking for but he is not confident with the front end of the bike. This is limiting his performance. He could not make best use of the qualifying tyre because he did not have the proper feeling in the front end to push. This is the area we want to improve for the race.

Sylvain has improved his lap time a lot. Unfortunately he did not make it to the Superpole but it was very close. The good point is that every time he jumps on the bike he is improving his performance. Step by step he knows the bike better and he is able to get the best from it as we have seen in the second free practice where he made another step in tough conditions because the track temperature was high. So I expect that he can do a good race tomorrow. Race one will be important for him to understand how the competitors can handle 20 laps on a Superbike. It will be a good experience for him and I wish him all the best for tomorrow."

 

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CAMIER CONTINUES AMAZING WSB RETURN


Team Suzuki Press Office ? October 19.

FIXI Crescent Suzuki?s Leon Camier has continued with his amazing comeback at this weekend?s Spanish round of the eni FIM Superbike World Championship by progressing all the way to Superpole 3 this afternoon.

Camier qualified for the Superpole due to another impressive performance in this morning?s final qualifying session which saw him finish in ninth place. He approached the Superpole with the same calm and dedicated manner that he has shown all weekend and after using a Pirelli qualifying rear tyre in the first session he easily made his way to part two with sixth position. The Englishman is still suffering the after-effects of the accident at Istanbul just four?weeks ago that left him hospitalised and needing surgery on seven broken bones in his right foot. Camier again used a qualifying tyre in his Yoshimura-powered Suzuki GSX-R in Superpole 2 and repeated his performance from the first session to record sixth. The final part of Superpole for 2013 saw the Suzuki-man push as hard as he could on race-tyres to get a good grid position and he was pleased to secure a place at the front of the third row with seventh position. Camier will now be looking to be in the lead pack from the start of tomorrow?s races and plans to end the season with a flourish.

Jules Cluzel saw the disappointment of not qualifying for Superpole this morning quickly disappear, after some major setting changes to his FIXI Crescent Suzuki GSX-R enabled him make huge improvements in the final free practice session. The Frenchman couldn?t get the feel or grip he was after in the second qualifying session and was only able to finish 18th fastest, a position that forced his elimination from Superpole. His crew worked tirelessly to change almost every setting on his machine and it came to fruition as Cluzel recorded the second-fastest time in the session ? almost half-of-a-second quicker than he had been all weekend so far. Cluzel will now need to make good starts in tomorrow?s races so that he can put today?s advances to good use.

Today?s sessions were held in humid conditions, but the threat of rain never materialised. Eugene Laverty will start tomorrow?s two 21-lap races from pole position, with championship leader Tom Sykes second on the grid, with the third protagonist that is in with a chance of securing the title on Sunday, Sylvain Guintoli, in fifth. The first race will get underway at 12.00hrs local time (11.00hrs BST) with the final race of the season heading for the off at 15.30hrs local time (14.30hrs BST).

Leon Camier:

?I am really pleased with the result, especially considering that I haven?t ridden the bike properly since Germany and had two massive crashes in that time. I have got my confidence back up and the bike was starting to feel more natural and I enjoyed that. We used the qualifying tyre in Superpole 1 and we didn?t really need to; in hindsight we could have saved it till the last session and then I think we could have been further up the grid ? at least the next row. All-in-all, considering everything that has happened I am pretty happy with today. I really want to thank the whole team for keeping me calm and letting me build my confidence, rather than asking for more and creating other problems. The whole situation has been dealt with really well and I thank them for that.?

Jules Cluzel:

?It has been a strange day and I have had my worst qualifying of the year and also one of my best practice sessions. Yesterday I felt uncomfortable on the bike, so I was looking to improve today, but that didn?t happen and it was a bit of a disaster. I got stuck in the same lap-time and did all of them in the same tenth-of-a-second. I was really disappointed because it left me 18th and meant I couldn?t do Superpole. Les decided to change the bike and put the setting to how we had it at the winter test here, which was the second time I rode the FIXI Crescent Suzuki. The bike was much better, faster and easier to ride and I am disappointed we didn?t make this change before, but I at least had the chance to smile today and that was enough for me! I needed to prove that I was fast and that we just needed to set-up the bike. Tomorrow I will be looking for a comeback but it?s difficult to come from 18th here at Jerez and get a good result, but I will try my best and see what we can do.?

Paul Denning ? Team Manager:

?Leon?s done another stellar job today for the FIXI Crescent Suzuki team and continued the great work that he started yesterday. The races will be tough from both a fitness and physical pain point of view, but he?s put himself in a solid position to perform at his best - whatever limitations might be there due to the pain and fatigue that he might be suffering. Adrenalin is a great healer though and when the lights go out to race at a great circuit like this at Jerez, I?m sure the throttle will be wide open and the problems of the last few weeks will be the last thing on his mind.

?It?s been a frustrating day for Jules and his crew; even though the lap-time gaps are very small we didn?t do enough this morning to achieve a decent time and despite everybody?s best efforts, including the rider - as we saw on the action footage he was definitely trying ? we just didn?t have enough to progress to Superpole. The boys changed the bike quite considerably for the free practice and we went from 18th to second, so it was very much a case of what might have been. Jules has nothing to lose tomorrow and his confidence should have been boosted by what happened in free practice, so we are hoping he can end the season in a very positive way.?

Jerez ? eni FIM Superbike World Championship ? Superpole: 1. Eugene Laverty (Aprilia) 1?40.620: 2. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) +0.048: 3. Davide Giugliano (Aprilia) +0.219: 4. Marco Melandri (BMW) +0.310: 5. Sylvain Guintoli (Aprilia) +0.338. 7. Leon Camier (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) +1.217. 18. Jules Cluzel (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) ? no Superpole time.

 

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Sykes The SBK World Champion For Kawasaki
WSBK, Jerez, Spain, 20 October 2013

Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) took his first Superbike World Championship title today as the first Kawasaki rider to take the top prize in production-based racing since Scott Russell in 1993.
Sykes The SBK World Champion For Kawasaki
Sykes knew that at the test track of most of his rivals he would have his work cut out to win but he also knew that he did not have to take race victories to take the championship title.

In race one Tom rode to a solid third place and in doing so he took a large enough advantage to make his championship win safe. He received his trophy for the title win after this race but he still had a second 21-lap race, in warm conditions, to complete.

Tom gathered his concentration and pushed on to lead 13-laps of the second race and finished second in the race, with a final championship advantage of 23 points. Tom also took the new lap record at Jerez today with a 1?41.691 in race two. Sykes also led for 255 laps over the whole season, more than twice the total of the next best rider.

The championship win was particularly sweet for the entire Kawasaki Racing Team as they missed out on the title with Tom by only half a point in 2012. In the 2013 season Tom has scored nine race wins, 18 podiums of all kinds, eight pole positions and 13 fastest laps.

Although Loris Baz (Kawasaki Racing Team) did not race today he finished the championship in 8th place.

Mark Aitchison (Kawasaki Team Pedercini) made great improvements at this round, finishing tenth in race one and ninth in race two, for 18th in the championship.

Kawasaki Team Pedercini rider Federico Sandi was 16h in race one but fell from contention early in race two, rejoining shortly afterwards to finish 15th. He ended his season 17th overall.

Jeremy Guarnoni (MRS Kawasaki) led a four rider Kawasaki sweep of the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup race at Jerez, winning by 4.315 seconds from Pedercini Kawasaki rider Leandro Mercado, with Team MRS Kawasaki rider Romain Lanusse third. This was Kawasaki's third win in succession and placed Jeremy third in the final championship standings, with Mercado fourth overall. Pedercini Kawasaki rider Alessandro Andreozzi was fourth in the Jerez race.

Tom Sykes: ?Words cannot describe how I feel. I am very level headed but since Magny Cours there are moments where my mind started dreaming. When I was dreaming I had goose bumps and it was magical to even dream I could be world champion. But that was maybe 2% of what I am feeling now after winning the title. In race two it was my intention to do well, even though it would be difficult to top race one as all my energy had kind of gone after the first one. I hoped to be closer to the front but I did not expect to win. I think this was just Eugene?s race, although my Ninja ZX-10R was working very well. All things considered I have to be very happy today. World Champion, podium in the races and it has been an absolute pleasure to race with these guys this year. It was good for the championship that it got decided at the final round again, especially at this beautiful circuit, with these great fans. My team is mostly Spanish so it is a home round for them. The championship win has not fully sunk in yet but it will do soon, I?m sure.?

 

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BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team: A strong finale!

BMW Motorrad concluded its factory commitment in the FIM Superbike World Championship with a successful performance at Jerez. In the first race of the 2013 season finale, factory rider Marco Melandri fought for victory until the finish line, coming home in second on his BMW S 1000 RR and claiming the fastest lap. Unfortunately Marco could not take part in race two due to his injured ankle. His team-mate Chaz Davies finished the last races of the year in seventh and fifth respectively. Sylvain Barrier showed a strong World Superbike debut on a third RR of the BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK Team. He finished 12th in race one and fought within the top 10 in race two but crashed and slipped back to 13th. It was also a strong finale for BMW in the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup. Two weeks after Sylvain celebrated his second consecutive Riders' title with the BMW HP4 of the BMW Motorrad GoldBet STK Team, the German manufacturer today also secured the Manufacturers' title in the series.

Despite his injury, Marco only narrowly missed the victory in race one. Coming from fourth on the grid he improved to third right at the start. On lap two he put in the fastest lap of the race and overtook Tom Sykes to take second. From then on he stayed on the heels of leader Eugene Laverty. The two fought an exciting battle until the chequered flag. Marco was waiting for his chance and took it on the penultimate lap. He got past Laverty and took the lead. It was only in the final corner, when Laverty gave it another try and managed to overtake Marco. The Italian BMW rider crossed the line in second, slightly behind Laverty. Chaz meanwhile was not happy with his race. At the start, he improved from tenth to seventh, but he could not push to gain more positions. Thus, he stayed in seventh until the finish line. Sylvain had a faultless debut race in World Superbikes. From 16th on the grid, he put in consistent laps and improved some positions, coming home in 12th.

After race one, Marco had to be treated in the Clinica Mobile again and unfortunately he could not start in the second race. Chaz improved to fifth right at the start and in the early stages he was fighting in the front group. Over the course of the race, the gaps to the front increased. Chaz stayed in fifth until the finish line. Sylvain was getting more and more confident on his RR. He fought exciting battles with some established competitors and worked his way up to ninth. On the penultimate lap he then unluckily crashed but was able to re-join and cross the line in 13th. The winner of this race was again Laverty.

In the Manufacturers' ranking, BMW finished the season in third with 443 points. This marks the best ever season for BMW in the Superbike World Championship with the previous best score of 421 points in the 2012 being topped. In the Riders' classification, Marco is fourth overall with 359 points. Chaz follows directly behind with 290 points. BMW Motorrad congratulates Tom Sykes for securing the 2013 Riders' title and Aprilia for winning the Manufacturers' championship.

In the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, BMW Motorrad secured its second Manufacturers' title after 2010 Thus, the new BMW HP4, which is equipped with the electronic damping system DDC, celebrated the Riders' and the Manufacturers' title in its first year in the championship. The HP4 which Sylvain won the Riders' title with two weeks ago was ridden by IDM-Champion Markus Reiterberger at Jerez. The young German finished today's final race in fifth. In doing so, he collected the points BMW Motorrad needed to stay in front of its rivals and to celebrate the Manufacturers' crown. South-African Greg Gildenhuys finished 12th on the other HP4 of the BMW Motorrad GoldBet STK Team.

Stephan Schaller (President BMW Motorrad): "During the last five years, BMW Motorrad have clearly shown a consistent growth, becoming one of the top teams in production based motorcycle racing in both Superbike and Superstock championships. In the last two WSBK seasons we established ourselves as a title contender, winning or being on the podium very often with both our riders. In the Superstock class, we won three Riders' titles in the last four years and two Manufacturer championships with two different models, the BMW S 1000 RR and the BMW HP4. I want to congratulate the team, the R&D department and our riders and all others who have contributed to make BMW Motorrad a strong player in the Motorsport. The experience we have gained in World Superbikes has been fundamental for BMW Motorrad as a brand as well as for the product development. In the last five years we learned a lot from the technical and sportive points of view, and we understood how important it is to stay committed to motorsports. BMW Motorrad will go on as protagonist in motorsports thanks to our comprehensive customer sport project."

Marco Melandri: "The first race was amazing. I gave everything to keep Eugene's pace. Already with five laps to go I could not ride like I wanted because I could not use my foot properly but it was quite okay thanks to the Clinica Mobile. On the penultimate lap he made a little mistake so I came close to him and could try to make a pass. It was not an easy situation because we were sliding a lot but I was in front on the last lap. Then in the last corner I thought that Eugene has nothing to lose in the championship and could give it a try so I preferred to stay inside but I braked too early. Eugene was very smart so in the end he made a nice pass on me and that was it. I was sorry for my team because I would have liked to celebrate the 100th podium of my career with a win but it was okay like this. Congratulations to Tom and Kawasaki, they had an amazing end of the season. After race one my ankle was too painful. I preferred to listen to my body and not to race. I also did not want to end my time with BMW with a bad result. The last two years were a really important time in my career. I met great people who became really close to me and ready to help me. For sure the most difficult step will be to leave them, because they loved me, and to re-start from scratch. I wish all of them the best for the future, because they are fantastic and deserve the best."

Chaz Davies: "P7 in the first race just seems to be where we are this weekend. I did not get the feeling that I wanted, I was struggling when turning and lacking grip. We made a lot of changes for today but we had a damp warm-up so we weren't able to evaluate these changes properly so I went into the race with a completely different bike, but I still had issues. I kept losing the front and eventually the rear seemed to break traction too easy. I just gave all that I had but more was not possible. For race two we changed the front tyre and it was definitely an improvement. I was faster than in race one in hotter temperatures so I was closer to the top guys but unfortunately not close enough. It was probably one of the toughest weekends of the season which is a shame to end on. Looking back on the season I have to say that on the whole I am happy. Thanks to BMW for giving me the opportunity to win in World Superbikes more than once. I collected three victories this year and challenged at the front and got multiple podiums. So again: 'Thank you' to BMW and the team, it was a good year."

Sylvain Barrier: "I really enjoyed the weekend, it was a great experience. Race one was amazing. I was really excited to get on the grid and then I was surprised by my lap times. I was not super quick but I was consistent and that is what I wanted. I was more than pleased with how my debut race went and was looking forward to even making it a little bit better in race two. I had learned more about the bike and felt better and better on it. I was a bit sad that I crashed but this is racing. I tried to give my best and wanted to finish the race in a good position. Overall I improved a lot over the weekend and I think I can be satisfied. I am very happy to be with BMW and grateful that BMW gave me this chance to race in World Superbikes for the first time."

Andrea Buzzoni (General Manager BMW Motorrad WSBK): "Today a very important period for BMW Motorrad comes to the end, with a very positive outcome. In last five years in the Superbike World Championship we experienced a steady growth of performance, which brought BMW Motorrad to be permanently among the top teams and able to fight for victories. In addition, In the Superstock Championship, BMW established a dominant leadership achieving three rider titles and 2 manufacturer titles.

This season in the Superbike Championship has been the best ever. Together our riders, Marco and Chaz, scored 121 points more than last year and 18 podiums, 3 more than last year and, for the first time, both of them won. The team was able to understand the needs of the two riders - who have different riding styles and physical characteristics - and enable them to win. We achieved those results thanks to the professional skills and the human qualities of all people involved in this successful project and, of course, thanks to the cooperation of R&D division and the race team. I want to thank all of them for this success. I'm proud that BMW Motorrad gave me this responsibility and I thank BMW for this confidence."

Stephan Fischer (Technical Director BMW Motorrad Motorsport): "First of all, I want to say a big 'Thank you' to everyone who was involved in this project. We have been a fantastic team and a real community. Every single person gave everything and this allowed us to reach our common target. With working very hard, everyone contributed their part to make the factory commitment in World Superbikes a success. From a technical point of view I can look back with pride on what we have achieved. Our bike has the perfect base and we technicians developed a very good understanding of what is needed to make it perform on the race track. Today Marco was very close to gifting himself and the team with a farewell victory. This showed the high potential of the team, the bike and the rider. We have also seen something else this weekend: Sylvain debuted on the WSBK version of the RR and Markus rode the HP4 for the first time. Both were fast from the word go. This proved how competitive our bikes are and how quickly we can adapt them to the individual requirements of each circuit. For us, the logical step is to now bring this on a wider platform which we will do with our extended customer sports programme. We will strengthen our presence in the national and international championships. Our customers around the globe can count on evidentially competitive bikes. We are looking forward to an exciting and successful future of BMW Motorrad in motorsports."

 

[KUCIAR666]

HEROIC RETURN FOR CAMIER AT JEREZ WSB

FIXI Crescent Suzuki?s Leon Camier completed a valiant comeback from injury during today?s two races at the eni FIM Superbike World Championship event at Jerez in Spain to record two top-eight finishes.

Camier had two strong races despite only getting back on a bike last Friday after a four-week lay-off following a severely broken foot. The Suzuki rider produced his best performance in the second race as he took an impressive sixth-place. Starting from seventh on the grid, he held that position until lap-eight when he got the better of Davide Giugliano. Camier tried to close the gap on the top-five, but was unable to make any impression on the leading group, so rode a smooth and sensible race to courageously bring his machine home in sixth. In race-one the Englishman lost a place on lap-one, but didn?t let that bother him as he tucked in behind the Factory BMW of Chaz Davies for the rest of the race and produced very consistent lap-times to consolidate his position at the end of the race.

Jules Cluzel always had a tough task ahead of him today after qualifying 18th yesterday. He also produced his best race in the second event as he got a great start to move to 12th at the end of the first-lap. The Frenchman continued to push and pick-off other riders as he moved through the field, eventually making his way up to eighth on lap-16; a position that held on to until the chequered flag. The first race saw him also move through the field from 18th to 11th on lap five. Cluzel chased down the rider in-front of him to try and take a top-10 finish, but as he lined up Mark Aitchinson on the final corner to take the place, the Australian pushed him wide and he was unable to make the pass and had to settle for 11th. Cluzel also had the honour of taking the highest top-speed through the speed-trap on the 4,423m Spanish circuit, as his Yoshimura-powered Suzuki GSX-R recorded 279.7km/h - over 1.5km/h quicker than his nearest rival in the second race.

Today?s results for the FIXI Crescent Suzuki team also moved them into fourth position in both the team and manufacturer?s championships, giving the squad the honour of top privateer team and also beating a number of factory outfits. Cluzel consolidated his 10th in the championship, just missing out on a higher place by one-point, although he did have the satisfaction of being the top-rookie. Camier also moved up to 11th in the standings even though he has had some very bad luck with injuries that have caused him to miss a large amount of the season.

Former Crescent Suzuki racer Tom Sykes took third place in race one today, which was enough to secure the World Championship title for the 28-year-old Englishman. Everyone at FIXI Crescent Suzuki would like to pass on their congratulations to Sykes; a very worthy 2013 champion. Both of today?s races were won by Eugene Laverty on an Aprilia to secure runner-up place in the championship for the Irishman.

FIXI Crescent Suzuki will now remain at Jerez for a post-season test on Tuesday as it begins its preparations for the 2014 season, which is provisionally scheduled to begin at Phillip Island in Australia next February.

Leon Camier:

?I am really, really happy to be honest, because I didn?t expect a good result like that. It?s one of those things you debate with yourself as to whether you can ride or not, but as soon as you get on the bike and you get a bit of confidence back, it helps you to feel comfortable. Then you think that you need to go faster and push harder and you get right back in to the job, but you also have to try and keep a level head in those situations. It was good to follow the BMW and see where they are strong and find out what we need to improve on the bike. It was also encouraging to be racing with a Factory BMW and also to beat Giugliano, who has just been putting it on the podium and racing with the leaders recently. I think we all did a good job considering everything and I can?t thank my team enough for their patience and help. I felt exhausted at the end and my foot was sore, but it was a good day all-in-all..?

Jules Cluzel:

?We made some changes from race-one to race-two and there were some good points about that and I enjoyed it a little bit more. I had to fight more with other riders and this was fun. The lap-time was not the best because I had to pass everybody at the beginning. I am happy with the race, because the weekend was not easy after Magny-Cours ? which was a disaster for me ? and we had a difficult start to the weekend and only qualified in 18th here. We made some big changes, but they were too late so they didn?t help our grid position, but that?s racing! This is the last race and now the season has finished, I have the feeling that I didn?t do my best in some races and that is probably because I was a rookie and I need more time to learn.?

Paul Denning ? Team Manager:

?Not FIXI Crescent Suzuki?s most exciting race-day of the season, but all things considered it was a great effort by both riders and everyone in the team. Eighth and sixth places for Leon - considering that specialist advice would have seen him at home with his broken foot in the air still recovering ? was an amazing result in context and I, on behalf of everyone in the team and all our partners, thank him for his dedication and efforts to be back here and so competitive.

?From 18th on the grid the opportunities were always going to be limited for Jules, but particularly in the second race he did really well to recover to eighth and he rode two consistent and strong races and impressed us with his determination and aggression in making so many passes.

?The 2013 season has flown by and whilst we seemed to have attracted our unfair share of bad luck, there have been many positives. Despite all that bad luck, injuries and missed races, we have still managed to beat both Factory Ducati and Honda teams in the championship and the team has done a great job to take the level of the bike to where it is now and retain fantastic durability and race-long reliability. Thanks to everybody involved in the team. We know there is work to do to improve the level of the bike to fight consistently with the front group, but those steps are being taken and we are looking to make the best of those lessons learned as we move into 2014.?

Jerez ? eni FIM Superbike World Championship ? Race One: 1. Eugene Laverty (Aprilia) 36?00.919: 2. Marco Melandri (BMW) +0.218: 3. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) +6.681: 4. Sylvain Guintoli (Aprilia) +9.327: 5. Toni Elias (Aprilia) +20.446. 8. Leon Camier (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) +29.548. 11. Jules Cluzel (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) +37.008.

Jerez ? eni FIM Superbike World Championship ? Race Two: 1. Laverty 36?05.989: 2. Sykes +2.711: 3. Guintoli +5.710: 4. Elias +15.509: 5. Chaz Davies (BMW) +21.830: 6. Leon Camier (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) +26.558. 8. Jules Cluzel (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) +33.056.

World Championship Classification: 1. Sykes 447: 2. Laverty 424: 3. Guintoli 402: 4. Melandri 359: 5. Davies 290. 10. Jules Cluzel (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) 175. 11. Leon Camier (FIXI Crescent Suzuki) 132.